Legal Trends
Uber and Lyft Crashes in NYC: The $1.25M Insurance Tier and What Passengers Can Recover
NY rideshare insurance: up to $1.25M for injured passengers and pedestrians when the app is on. No-fault, serious-injury, and the Wu v. Uber ruling.
Key Finding
Injured rideshare passengers and pedestrians struck by an Uber or Lyft in New York can access up to $1.25 million in liability coverage when the app is on with a passenger or en route, plus $50,000 in no-fault Personal Injury Protection benefits. To pursue pain and suffering damages, claimants must meet the serious injury threshold under Insurance Law § 5102(d). The 2024 New York Court of Appeals decision in Wu v. Uber Technologies, Inc. held that the clickwrap process Uber used to update its terms formed a binding agreement to arbitrate, and it affirmed an order compelling arbitration and staying the passenger's lawsuit.
$1.25M
Liability coverage required by New York's TNC rules when a rideshare app is on and the driver has accepted a ride or has a passenger. Plus $50,000 in no-fault Personal Injury Protection benefits. App status at the moment of the crash controls everything.
NY Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1693: TNC Financial Responsibility
The crash report rarely says “rideshare.” It says “Toyota Camry, two vehicles, intersection.” The fact that the Camry was running an Uber or Lyft trip changes the insurance map completely.
In New York, an injured rideshare passenger or a pedestrian struck by a rideshare driver can sit on top of three policies at once: the company’s TNC commercial coverage, the driver’s personal auto insurance, and the no-fault Personal Injury Protection benefits attached to the vehicle.
The order in which those policies pay, and how much they pay, depends on a single fact at the moment of the crash: was the app on, and what was the driver doing?
The Three TNC Tiers
New York’s Transportation Network Company framework, administered through the Department of Financial Services and the Department of Motor Vehicles outside NYC and through the TLC inside NYC, requires tiered insurance coverage based on app status. Industry legal summaries describe the structure this way:
| App Status | Coverage |
|---|---|
| App on, passenger in vehicle or en route to pickup | Up to $1.25 million in liability coverage |
| App on, waiting for a ride request | Lower bodily injury and property damage tiers |
| App off | Driver’s personal auto insurance only |
The $1.25 million figure is the headline number. It’s also the most common scenario in a passenger injury claim, because by definition the passenger had to be in the vehicle, which means the app was on and the trip was active.
For a pedestrian struck by a rideshare driver, the app status determines everything. A driver between trips with the app off is no different from any other private motorist for insurance purposes.
A driver who had just accepted a ride request is in the higher TNC tier. The trip log, which both Uber and Lyft maintain, is the document that decides this.
How No-Fault Stacks With Liability
Even before any liability claim, a rideshare crash victim in New York can access up to $50,000 in no-fault Personal Injury Protection benefits. PIP covers medical expenses and a portion of lost wages regardless of fault. It applies to passengers, pedestrians struck by the vehicle, and the driver themselves.
PIP gets to medical bills and immediate lost income while liability is still being figured out. It does not cover pain and suffering. To recover those damages, the claimant must meet the serious injury threshold under Insurance Law § 5102(d).
The threshold is not trivial.
The categories include death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement, fracture, loss of a fetus, permanent loss of use, permanent consequential limitation, significant limitation of use, and a medically determined non-permanent injury that prevents the claimant from performing substantially all material acts that constitute usual daily activities for at least 90 of 180 days after the crash.
The 90-of-180 category is the most contested. Insurance carriers and their experts often argue that a soft-tissue claimant returned to “substantially all” their daily activities even when objective medical evidence shows ongoing impairment. The medical record, the timeline of treatment, and the physician’s specific findings carry the case.
The Wu v. Uber Decision
Wu v. Uber Technologies, Inc. came before the New York Court of Appeals in 2024 on a question that matters to every passenger with a claim against a TNC: can the terms you tap through in the app force your case out of court and into private arbitration?
The facts: The passenger sued Uber in court over a personal injury. Two months later, she accepted updated terms of use through Uber’s “clickwrap” screen, tapping a box and pressing “Confirm.” Those terms contained an arbitration agreement. Uber moved to compel arbitration.
On November 25, 2024, the Court of Appeals held that the clickwrap process put the passenger on notice of the arbitration agreement and that her clicks formed a binding agreement to arbitrate. That agreement delegated the question of its own enforceability to the arbitrator. The Court affirmed the order compelling arbitration and staying the lawsuit.
For an injured passenger, the practical takeaway is direct: the terms you accept in a rideshare app can route your claim into arbitration instead of a courtroom. Read what you tap, and talk to a lawyer before you accept updated terms after a crash.
What the Crash Data Shows, and What It Doesn’t
The University of Illinois Chicago published a 2024 study finding that roughly one-third of surveyed rideshare drivers reported being in a crash while working. Uber’s own US Safety Report tracks fatalities and serious incidents at the platform level. Neither of those data points isolates NYC.
Public TLC and DMV crash data does not break out Uber and Lyft separately from other for-hire vehicles in any of the published reports we surveyed. That’s a meaningful gap.
The TLC publishes monthly trip volume by TNC, but crash counts are aggregated with the broader for-hire fleet. Without TNC-specific crash data, every estimate of NYC rideshare crash frequency is an inference.
What we do have is the legal framework, which is settled, and the insurance map, which controls how recovery works.
What Passengers and Pedestrians Should Do
Three steps preserve a claim.
Capture the trip data. The Uber or Lyft trip receipt shows the timestamp, the route, and the driver’s identity. Take screenshots of the trip in the app immediately. The trip data tells the insurance carrier and the court whether the $1.25 million tier was active.
Get medical care quickly. Insurance Law § 5102(d) hinges on documented injuries. Gaps in treatment, especially long ones, give defense counsel and the carrier’s medical examiner room to argue that the injury wasn’t serious. Same-day or next-day care is the cleanest record.
File a no-fault application within 30 days. New York requires the no-fault application (NF-2) to be submitted within 30 days of the accident to preserve PIP benefits. Missing the window can forfeit medical bill coverage even when fault is clear.
The deadline for a personal injury lawsuit against a private driver and the TNC is three years from the date of the crash under CPLR § 214(5). For wrongful death, the window is two years under EPTL § 5-4.1. Different rules apply when a government vehicle is involved.
Note
The no-fault application (NF-2) must be submitted within 30 days of the crash to preserve PIP benefits. If a city or MTA vehicle was involved, a Notice of Claim under General Municipal Law § 50-e must be filed within 90 days. Missing either deadline can forfeit recovery even when fault is clear.
What’s Coming
Two trends will shape NYC rideshare litigation through 2026.
The first is the slow process of building a primary-source data set. Until the TLC and DMV publish TNC-specific crash counts, plaintiffs and policymakers are working with platform safety reports and academic surveys. That will change. The DMV’s annual report is the most likely venue.
The second is litigation around the contractor-versus-employee question. Uber and Lyft have built their NYC operations around a contractor model that limits direct employer liability. Each appellate decision tests where the company’s duty starts and stops.
Wu v. Uber dealt with arbitration, keeping disputes out of court. The next round of cases will reach further into substantive liability.
Sources
- NY Court of Appeals. Wu v. Uber Technologies, Inc., 2024 NY Slip Op 05869 (N.Y. Ct. App. Nov. 25, 2024). https://www.nycourts.gov/reporter/3dseries/2024/2024_05869.htm
- Uber. US Safety Report. https://www.uber.com/us/en/about/reports/us-safety-report/
- University of Illinois Chicago. (2024). Uber and Lyft Drivers Face Similar Crash Risks as Traditional Taxi Drivers. https://today.uic.edu/rideshare-crash-research/
- NY Senate. Insurance Law § 5102(d): Serious Injury Threshold. https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/ISC/5102
- NY Senate. (2026). Bill A10008 (Chapter 58 of 2026): Repeal of the 90/180-Day Serious Injury Category. https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A10008
- NY State Senate. Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1693: Financial Responsibility of Transportation Network Companies. https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/VAT/1693
Updated July 11, 2026
Frequently asked questions
- How much insurance does Uber or Lyft carry when their driver hits me in New York?
When the rideshare app is on and the driver has accepted a ride or has a passenger in the vehicle, New York's Transportation Network Company rules require $1.25 million in liability coverage, according to legal industry summaries of the TNC framework. When the app is on but no ride has been accepted, lower bodily injury and property damage tiers apply. When the app is off, the driver's personal auto insurance is the only coverage in play. Always document the trip status at the time of the crash.
- Can I file a no-fault claim if a rideshare driver injured me?
Yes. New York's no-fault law provides up to $50,000 in Personal Injury Protection benefits for medical expenses and lost wages, regardless of who caused the crash. Passengers and pedestrians struck by a vehicle can access PIP. To recover pain and suffering damages on top of no-fault, you must meet the serious injury threshold defined in Insurance Law § 5102(d).
- What is the serious injury threshold under New York Insurance Law § 5102(d)?
Insurance Law § 5102(d) lists eight categories that qualify as a serious injury: death, dismemberment, significant disfigurement, fracture, loss of a fetus, permanent loss of use of a body organ or member, permanent consequential limitation, and significant limitation of use. A ninth category, the 90/180-day rule, existed until Bill A10008 (Chapter 58 of 2026) repealed it effective May 26, 2026. Lawsuits filed before that date still proceed under the old nine-category definition.
- What did Wu v. Uber Technologies decide?
Wu v. Uber Technologies, Inc., decided by the New York Court of Appeals on November 25, 2024, involved a passenger who had filed a personal injury lawsuit against Uber and then accepted updated terms of use through Uber's "clickwrap" screen. The Court held that the clickwrap process put the passenger on notice of the arbitration agreement in those terms and that her clicks formed a binding agreement to arbitrate, which delegated the question of the agreement's enforceability to the arbitrator. The Court affirmed the order compelling arbitration and staying her court case. For injured riders, the takeaway is that the terms you accept in the app can push your claim into private arbitration.
- What happens if I'm a passenger in an Uber or Lyft and the car crashes in NYC?
Up to $1.25 million in TNC liability coverage applies whenever the app is on with a passenger in the vehicle or the driver is en route to pick one up, per NY's Transportation Network Company law (Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1693). You can also access up to $50,000 in no-fault Personal Injury Protection benefits for medical bills and a portion of lost wages, regardless of who caused the crash. To recover pain and suffering, you must meet the serious-injury threshold under Insurance Law § 5102(d), which includes fracture, significant disfigurement, permanent loss of use, or a significant limitation of use of a body function or system. A former 90/180-day category applies only to lawsuits filed before May 26, 2026, when Bill A10008 (Chapter 58 of 2026) repealed it. The NF-2 no-fault application must be filed within 30 days, and a personal injury suit must be filed within three years under CPLR § 214(5).
- How many people have died in Uber or Lyft crashes in NYC?
There isn't a clean NYC-specific figure. The TLC and DMV publish for-hire vehicle crash data but don't separate Uber and Lyft trips from the broader for-hire fleet. Uber's own US Safety Report tracks platform-level fatalities and serious incidents nationally, but it doesn't isolate New York. A 2024 University of Illinois Chicago study found roughly one-third of surveyed rideshare drivers reported a crash while working. Until the TLC and DMV publish TNC-specific crash counts, every NYC fatality estimate is an inference from platform safety reports and academic surveys.
- What happens if I'm in an Uber and it gets into an accident?
When you're riding as a passenger in an Uber or Lyft and the vehicle is involved in a crash, you're covered under the transportation network company's commercial liability policy, which New York Insurance Law § 5102 and the TNC framework require to provide at least $1.25 million in coverage while the app is active and a trip is in progress. That coverage applies regardless of whether the Uber driver or another motorist caused the collision, so your path to compensation doesn't depend solely on proving your driver was at fault. New York's no-fault system will typically cover your initial medical expenses and lost wages up to the statutory limits, but if your injuries meet the serious injury threshold defined under Insurance Law § 5102(d), including significant disfigurement, fracture, or a significant limitation of use of a body function or system, you may pursue a personal injury claim beyond no-fault. A former 90/180-day category applies only to lawsuits filed before May 26, 2026, when Bill A10008 (Chapter 58 of 2026) repealed it. Determining which policy responds first, whether the TNC's insurer, the driver's personal carrier, or a third-party driver's policy, requires a careful review of the app's status at the moment of impact, since the coverage tier drops significantly when the driver is logged in but hasn't yet accepted a ride. An attorney can help you gather the trip data, incident reports, and insurance declarations needed to identify every available source of recovery and protect your rights within New York's applicable filing deadlines.
- What is the Uber 2 minute rule?
New York's rideshare insurance framework, governed by Insurance Law § 5102 and the state's Transportation Network Company rules codified under Vehicle and Traffic Law § 1693, creates distinct coverage tiers that hinge on whether a driver had the app on and was actively matched with a passenger. The so-called "2 minute rule" is an informal reference to the TNC policy structure in which New York's required $1.25 million commercial liability coverage activates once a driver accepts a trip request, meaning the seconds or minutes between acceptance and actual pickup fall under that higher coverage tier rather than the lower contingent coverage that applies when the app is on but no ride is accepted. For an injured person, this distinction matters enormously because a crash occurring during that pre-pickup window, even if the driver is only a block or two away, may be covered by Uber's full commercial policy rather than a driver's personal auto policy, which often excludes TNC use entirely. New York's Public Service Commission and the state legislature have required TNC platforms to maintain these tiered coverage structures precisely to close gaps that left injured passengers and pedestrians without adequate recovery options. An attorney reviewing your rideshare crash should obtain the driver's trip log and app-status data from Uber directly, since that timestamped record determines which coverage tier applies and shapes the entire recovery strategy.
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Antin, J. S. (2026, April 24). Uber and Lyft Crashes in NYC: The $1.25M Insurance Tier and What Passengers Can Recover. AEE Law Insights. https://aeelaw.com/insights/uber-lyft-rideshare-accidents-nyc/
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